FIFE Council's chief executive has warned staff they "wont simply be able to grant people leave" as the Coronovirus crisis continues.

In an update to all employees, Steve Grimmond acknowledged that school closures will have a huge impact and said they would be flexible but work would still need to be carried out.

"The latest news today is that schools will be closing at the end of this week. This will obviously have a huge impact on many employees – but also on our frontline services - so there are lots of issues for us to work through," he said.

"We’ll issue more information and guidance for staff tomorrow and Friday but we’ll be taking a common sense approach to this. Given the scale of the challenge across the council, and the length of time that these closures might last, we won’t simply be able to grant people leave.

"If you need to look after children or, indeed, another vulnerable dependent, we’ll be flexible about working arrangements and the type of work you do, but people will still be expected to carry out some work from home. This is the same as the position for employees who are self-isolating with their household.

"Across the council – and indeed the country and the world – we’re adjusting to a very different sort of business as usual. And, as public sector workers, we’re going to need to be more flexible than ever before and come together as a single team to help our communities, and each other, through the months ahead."